Insects in Your Home Are No Good: Tips to Prevent Home Pest Damage

Few insects are welcome in and around the home. Butterflies? Yes. Spiders?
Perhaps the nonpoisonous kind, as they eat thousands of unwelcome bugs
each year. Termites and carpenter ants? Definitely not. These two types
of pests can cause extensive damage to a home, damage not typically covered
by insurance. Read on to learn how to prevent an infestation. If they
already arrived, get info on how to control them and fix the damage already caused.

Practice Integrated Pest Management

Integrated pest management combines several methods to prevent infestation
and damage to your home. The goal of IPM is to remove attractants and
to use the most economical and least hazardous methods for control, making
this an excellent option for homes with small children and pets.

For example, the United States Environmental Protection Agency's helpful pamphlet
Citizen's Guide to Pest Control and Pesticide Safetyrecommends removing or destroying places where these pests can hide outdoors,
such as piles of wood under or around your home. The EPA also directs
homeowners to remove diseased plants, tree prunings, and fallen fruit
and leaves. It recommends keeping vegetation, shrubs and any wood mulch
at least 18 inches from the home.

Identifying the pest problem-You need to know what you're dealing with
in order to manage it.

Deciding how much pest control is necessary-As noted, some spiders are
beneficial and not a danger.

Choosing an effective option-The United States Environmental Protection
Agency offers the helpful pamphlet,
Citizen's Guide to Pest Control and Pesticide Safety, which offers more information about IPM through both non-chemical and
chemical pets controls.

Evaluating the results-Give it time to work, then asses how well it worked
or didn't.

The Molly Maid website also offers additional information about
preventing and getting rid of insects , including
How to Get Rid of Flies and Keep Bugs Out of the House,
Make Your Kitchen a No-Fruit-Fly Zone, and
Get Rid of Bed Bugs. Molly Maid also has available the helpful infographic,
How to Make Your Home a Bug Free Zone. In it, you learn that there are nearly 1.5 million ants for every human
on the planet, but that you can best prevent their arrival by keeping
a clean home.

Evaluate and Fix the Damage Caused by Pests ASAP

If the termites or carpenter ants were able to cause damage to your home
without you noticing it, a
professional handyman can help. He or she will perform an inspection of your home to evaluate
the extent of the damage, and then a crew can get to work
repairing the affected wood. It may be able to removed compromised wood and use wood hardener or filler
to repair the area. Or a full replacement of an area of wood on your home
may be required.

Most homeowners outsource these
carpentry tasks to a skilled handyman, as a serious termite or carpenter ant infestation
can result in structural weaknesses within a home. The work should be
done in conjunction with pest control to ensure the repairs will not need
to be made again in mere months because the termites or carpenter ants
were not completely removed. You also will want to put into practice the
above IPM prevention methods to keep new colonies from inviting themselves
into your home.

Mr. Handyman can maintain your home to save you money. One call really does take care
of everything on your to-do list. Make sure to stay on top of all your
household repairs, improvements and maintenance needs and
request service now online.